Structures for use on both land and/or water as security barrier systems have been previously developed. Such structures generally intend to stop intruding objects, and range from thick, solid walls blocking the object's progress to secured areas for disabling the propelling mechanism of the object. These structures commonly exhibit noticeable shortcomings. First, these structures are often cumbersome and time-consuming to install and erect as and where desired. Second, they are difficult, or even impossible, to maintain and/or repair after they have sustained the impact of an intruding object. Third, they are often not adaptable to different needs and conditions.
One solution providing an improved marine barrier is shown in FIG. 1 and disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/586,270, filed Aug. 15, 2012, and published as US 2013/0119334, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. The marine barrier 400 of FIG. 1 includes two continuous pleated rows 401, 402 of first and second respective pluralities of buoyant panels 110, to form a diamond-shaped barrier. A plurality of outboard hinges 120 and a plurality of inboard hinges 420 elastically connect opposing sides of adjacent panels 110 with the included angle A therebetween to form two continuous pleated rows 401, 402, such that the hinges 120, 420 are arranged in first, second, and third substantially parallel rows.
A first plurality of impact cables 430 are attached to opposing ends of the first pleated row of panels 401 and pass through each of the hinges 120 in the first row of hinges. A second plurality of impact cables 430 are attached to opposing ends of the second pleated row of panels 402 and pass through each of the hinges 120 in the third row of hinges. In this example, there are five impact cables 430 associated with each of the pleated rows 401, 402, and they are substantially parallel to each other. Impact cables 430 comprise, for example, steel wire rope. Impact cables 430 can also be nets with vertical and horizontal wires rather than only horizontal wires as shown.
When the barrier 400 is floating in a body of water 440 and a moving vessel (represented by arrow 450) impacts one or more of the first plurality of impact cables 430 attached to the first pleated row 401 of panels 110, the impact cables 430 deflect to transfer a force of the impact to one or more of the first plurality of panels 110 of the first pleated row 401, which in turn engage the water 440, and to one or more of the second plurality of panels of the second pleated row 402, which in turn engage the water 440, to transfer the force of the impact to the water 440 and arrest the motion of the vessel.
Likewise, if a vessel impacts one or more of the second plurality of impact cables 430 attached to the second pleated row 402, the load path of the impact force will be similar, but in an opposite direction. Thus, during an impact the panels 110 are drawn in around the point of impact and engage the water to dissipate the impact force.
The marine barrier of FIG. 1 is a vast improvement over previous barriers, but is designed to be a permanent structure, and is designed to have a very high level of effectiveness. Consequently, it may be unnecessarily large, heavy, and/or costly for temporary applications, for deployment in remote areas, or for lower-performance applications that do not require its effectiveness or its built-in redundancies.
There exists a need for an effective marine barrier that is low cost, lightweight, and easily portable.